The Empire of Great Britain
The Empire of Great Britain, or commonly referred to as the British Empire, is a country on an island off the coast of Europe. The British Empire once had one of the largest empires in the world. Shortly after the Retreat from Europe near the end of the Great War, there was mass outrage though out the Empire, resulting in multiple mass demonstrations by nationalist movements sparked from the belief that the current British government only cares about itself and not the people. History The British Empire during the Great War On August 3, 1914, the German Empire invaded Belgium trying to flank the French, using their schlieffen plan. The British had guaranteed the independence of Belgium in the Treaty of London (1839), The Germans did not think Britain would Great Britain’s participation was started by the invasion and violation of Belgian neutrality. Britain after the Great War The New National British Order party (NNBO) organized a mass demonstration in October 1926, which resulted in Sir Oswald Mosley's New National British Order Party ascending to power in Britain. In late November 1926. The great war gave rise to an Ultranationalist cultural shift, Britain still believing they are the uncontested superpower of the world. the rampant rise in authoritarianism in the new government worried many of the dominions at the time. in 1927 the British parliament passed a bill granting full authority and decreased autonomy over every member of the British commonwealth. this resulted in mass protests throughout the empire, most notably in Canada the most autonomous Dominion in the Empire. On March 29, 1927, Canada's Current Administrative party was replaced by a British Selected Party, The British Canadian Union Party. This forced into power Political entity was the last Straw and the Canadian public had a mass Demonstration in protest. some of the British Guards with the new Government, Shot at protesters Killing 4 people and injuring 3 more. This Sparked The Canadian War of Independence which only lasted about a month but led to mass rebellion throughout the empire. When the Canadian War of Independence started most of the British Army at the time was busy fighting rebellions In Burma, the Middle East, Egypt, and Sudan, and they didn't have very many troops to send to retake control of Canada, Britain sent what reserves they could but they had a horrible defeat. The British public who was tired of all the war disliked sending their soldiers to die in another pointless war. So The British Government let Canada go, The other British Dominions took advantage of a weakened Britain and also declared their independence, without a fight. A Shattered Empire. The British Empire is a shadow of what it once was, With the loss of Canada, Newfoundland, South Africa, Australia, and New Zealand. Gave rise to new Dominions in The Dominion of Ireland, Dominion of the Caribbean, Dominion of Arabia. This new Commonwealth is not nearly as grand as the last but it was proof that the sun never sets on the British Empire. Politics Nationalism and Unity The New National British Order party (NNBO) sought to unify the British nation by healing sectarian divide between Protestant and Catholic Britons, and in particular it sought to appeal to Catholic Irish living in Britain. The NNBO declared support for complete religious toleration. NNBO Leader Sir Oswald Mosley emphasised the "Irish Connection" and the NNBO held both Protestant and Catholic religious branches. As a result of the NNBO's conciliatory approach to Catholics, it gained a substantial support amongst Catholics, and several NNBO leaders in Hull, Blackburn, and Bolton, were Catholics. Support by Catholic Irish in Stepney for the NNBO increased after the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War that involved clerical traditionalist and fascist forces fighting against an anti-clerical government. Foreign policies The British Empire is non-interventionist and argued against war if it is not in defence of Britain, the British Empire. It was believed the only threat to the British Empire was from the Soviet Union and the other communist states around the world. Corporatist policies and Authoritarianism would also be spread to the empire. It was seen as natural that the British Dominions would accept these policies as it would be beneficial to them. The spread of corporatist policies would have also led to an increased hold on India and with that have working conditions improved. Corporatism Despite being an authoritarian Regime, Britain is still democratic in everything other than on the federal level. Syndicalist economy In economics, NNBO opposes laissez-faire economics for being an outmoded system and promotes it to be replaced by a national syndicalist economic system. The NNBO denounced capitalism, with Mosley declaring: "Capitalism is a system by which capital uses the nation for its own purposes. What we need is a system by which the nation uses capital for its own purposes". He went on to say "private enterprise is not permitted when it conflicts with national interests". Traditionalism and Modernism The NNBO declared massive support for the British monarchy, regarding the monarchy for its role in bringing Britain to preeminence in the world, and as such a symbol of Britain's imperial splendour. Its support went as far as "Absolute loyalty to the Crown" and aimed to "in every way maintain its dignity and authority". The NNBO declared its support for complete religious toleration though also declared that it sought to merge both religious and secular spheres of the nation into a "higher harmony" between church and state, by supporting political representation for leading clerics in the House of Lords and state maintenance for religious schools for those who demanded them. The NNBO declared its support for Christianity and its opposition to atheism, saying "atheism will perish under British Union; Christianity will find encouragement and security, in which it may prosper to the glory of its Creator". The NNBO stressed the need for Britain to be linked to modernity especially in economics, Mosley had declared in 1927 in addressing the action needed in response to the onset of the Great Depression: "Modern problems require modern solutions and modern mindsets, we should then be able to lift this great economic problem and national emergency far above the turmoil of party clamour and with national unity could achieve a solution adequate to the problem and worthy of the modern mind". Military Army Name: The British Army Motto: ''' '''Role: Land Warfare Manpower: The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of British Armed Forces. Navy Name: The Royal Navy Ship Prefix Designation: HMS Motto: '''Si vis pacem, para bellum (If you wish for peace, prepare for war, Latin) '''Role: '''Naval Warfare '''Manpower: The Royal Navy (RN) is the British Empire's naval warfare force. Air Force Name: The Royal Air Force Motto: '''Per ardua ad astra, lit. (through adversity to the stars, Latin) '''Role: '''Aerial warfare '''Manpower: The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's aerial warfare force. Formed near the end of the Great War on 1 April 1918. Foreign Relations *The British Empire is non-interventionist and argued against war when it was not in defence of Britain or the British Empire. *It is believed the only threat to the British Empire was from the Soviet Union and The Peoples State of Germany. Economy The British Empire's economy is mostly civilian based. The military Industry and economy has remained largely undeveloped since the great war, due to the Syndicalist style economy of the nation. For the past decade, the economy has become more and more centralized. Map of the British Empire temp See also * * * *